WICCA AND WITCHCRAFT The Spiritual Seeker’s Guide
Steven S. Sadleir

Wicca, or Witchcraft is the old religion of Europe, whichapparently evolved from Druidism.  Wiccan is generally a term applied to a“Wise One” or “Magician”, and Wicca is the practice of “magic”, which is theapplication and utilization of natural laws.  As Witchcraft competed as areligion with Christianity (the ‘new’ religion) in the Christianized WesternWorld, witchcraft became repressed as a form of paganism (i.e., a PrimativeTeaching) and was given an evil stigma, and therefore was not practicedopenly.  However, with the repeal of the English Witchcraft Act in 1951,many covens, or congregations, have opened up to the public and many new groupshave formed. There are now dozens of Wiccan organisations in the United States and Europe,with perhaps, thousands of active Wiccans and Witches.  Most witchespracticing the craft publicly are considered ‘white’ witches, that is, they yestheir knowledge for good ends and practice the Wiccan Creed: “Ye hurt none, doas ye will.”  Black Witches (which has received most of the notoriety, butare considered a minority) are generally not visible to the public and use theirknowledge for selfish or evil means.  Satanism is NOT considered a form ofwitchcraft, but was created by people who believe there is a Satan, or Devil.

Wicca/Witchcraft generally involves some form of God orGoddess worship, and many involve the workings of spiritual guides aswell.  Wicca/Witchcraft is a very individualized religion, and each personchooses his or her own deities to worship.  Generally, the supreme beingis considered ‘genderless’ and is comprised of many aspects that may beidentified as masculine or feminine in
nature, and thus a God or Goddess.  Originally, the horned God of huntingrepresented the masculine facet of the deity, whereas the female qualities wererepresented in the fertility Goddess.  The Gods and Goddesses from thepersonalities of the supreme being, and are a reflection of the attributes thatworshippers seek to emulate.  Wiccans may draw upon the ancientcivilizations of the Druids, Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, or other polytheisticcultures to commune with the particular aspect of the deity that they identifywith.  Some favorite gods include Osiris, Pan, Cennunnos, andBacchus.  Facotie Goddesses include Isis, Caridwen, Rhea, Selene, andDiana.

Wiccans generally observe the four greater Sabbaths ofSamhain, Imbolc, Beltane, and Laghnasadh; and the lesser Sabbaths – the Springand autumn equinoxes and the summer and winter solstices.  Therecelebrations are typically free-spirited, and are sometimes held ‘skyclad’(naked) or in various styles of robes.  Other services include handfasting(marriage), handparting (divorce) and wiccaning (birth rite).  Regularmeetings, called Esbats are also held, at which magic and healing areperformed.  Wiccans/witches meet in small groups (up to twelve) called acoven, which typically join with other covens to form a ‘Grove’.

Rituals are typically held outside and consist of forma acircle and erecting the temple (consecrating the circle); invoking, praising,and soliciting assistance from gods, goddesses, and elementals; observing thechange of season and energies represented by the various seasons; singing;dancing; cakes and ale’ (sharing of bread and wine); and clearing the temple.Personal
proactive includes meditation and prayer, divination, development of personalwill and psychic abilities through spells and various forms of healing. Most Wiccans/witches have altars where they burn candles and incense andpractice their rites.  To perform their rites, other tools of the craftare used, such as an athame, yag-disk or, seaux (a handmade and consecratedknife), a sword, a
wand, and sometimes special jewelry, amulets or talismans (magically empoweredobjects). Sometimes these objects are inscribed with magical writings.Joining a coven or grove typically involves an initiation, which is stylized byeach individual group, but generally involves the confirmation that theinitiate understands the principals and an oath of secrecy.